This plate compactor has a Honda 5.5-horsepower engine, a centrifugal force of 5,000 pounds and a working width of 24 inches. Its short, wide plate produces a faster travel speed. The mounted wheel kit provides for easier transport around the job site. When not in use, the wheels fold up and lock into place.

Hardscaping is one line of work that still gets value from traditional tools like hammers, chisels, rakes and brooms but there are many present-day devices that help at every stage, beginning with where the shovel first meets the ground – excavation.

Whether for walls, patios, walkways, stairs, planters, fire features and the rest, dirt work is expedited by skid steers, loaders and excavators, and their numerous (and growing every year) attachments, including backhoes, blades, dump boxes, loaders, grapples and shovels.

To start with a level playing field, laser levels are extremely efficient. One type works by tracking the digging machine and informing the operator if it is on-grade, too deep or too shallow.

 

The PaverMax-Genius allows for the installation of entire layers of paving stones at one time. It is designed for use on excavators, backhoes and other similar equipment. A hydraulic rotator and a sequence control system provides operation of the clamp from one control lever.

When choosing a plate compactor, the main factors to compare are horsepower, centrifugal force, frequency in vibrations per minute, working width and braking systems but other timesaving features should be considered, such as reverse direction capabilities, anti-vibration dampening and mounted wheel kits for moving the machine when not in use.

For efficient screeding, there are implements pulled by loaders and skid steers, and specialized machines that distribute, spread and screed material at the same time.

Zorn's Portable Deflectometer provides compaction testing on all bases, even open-graded aggregate for permeable pavements and retaining walls. It meets ASTM standards for portable impulse plate load testing.

Clamping/lifting tools allow a worker to efficiently pick up and transfer stone material from pallets to the installation area. Pneumatic lifter/placers, which can be single or multi-worker operated, ease installation of pavers, bricks, blocks, etc.

Block/ stone/slab splitters are pneumatic tools for sizing natural stone and precast concrete blocks and slabs.

The Max-Truck by Muck-Truck has a carrying capacity of eight cubic feet and 800 pounds but it is only 28 inches wide, which allows it to fit through average doorways. It has four-wheel drive and can climb up to 30 degrees.

The every-handy wheelbarrow comes in motorized models. Walk-behind power brooms are used for sweeping sand and chip material into the joints of pavers. Sprayers designed specifically for hardscape work can apply coatings, sealants, bonding agents, even grout.

And there are all types of skid steer/tractor attachments such as buckets, hoppers, pallet forks and sweepers to clean up and remove remaining materials and debris from the job site, leaving nothing to detract from a first-rate hardscape project.